


Midterm Project

by orphan_account



Category: Mystic Messenger (Video Game)
Genre: AU, Alternature Universe, F/M, Gender-Neutral Pronouns, Gender-neutral Reader, M/M, hes in college in canon but like in this book RFA isnt a thing, normal college au i guess
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-11-16
Updated: 2017-06-26
Packaged: 2018-08-31 07:25:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,955
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8569528
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Your professor decided to assign a project instead of a test for the Midterm. The partners weren't assigned and you ended up with Yoosung Kim, a blonde boy who sat next to you, but whom you had never spoken to before. Although the project got off to a rocky start, the two of you managed to get it done, becoming well acquainted in the process.





	1. Project Partner

**Author's Note:**

> Please keep in mind this is an AU (Alternate Universe)!  
> Reader attends Sky University with Yoosung. RFA doesn't exist; none of the members are even mentioned except Rika.  
> Also, this probably won't be longer than a few chapters

The room was quiet, but filled with an anxious tension. The professor was running over the allotted class time, and on a Friday too. Everyone was ready to go home for the weekend. The professor was going into detail about the Midterm Project -- which would take the place of a test -- and what he wanted to see. It was a research project in the form of a PowerPoint and a typed paper on the disease of your choice. You wrote down all the requirements and waited for him to tell the class if it would be a partner project or not.

"Now," the professor started, walking over to his desk and retrieving a clipboard. He adjusted his glasses and looked down, sniffing. "I had originally assigned partners, but seeing as I've already gone over, I'll simplify things. Choose the person either to your immediate left or right, or someone in front of or behind you. Once you've settled on a partner for the project, you may leave," he concluded, tossing the clipboard back onto the desk and sitting down, cracking open a newspaper.

You looked to your right first. The girl next to you was already talking to another girl in front of her, so you immediately ruled her out. You looked left next and immediately met eyes with the boy next to you. He had purple eyes and blonde hair that stuck out in multiple directions. He was actually pretty attractive. The expression on his face was questioning. He had a notebook open in front of him but it was completely blank. It appeared he hadn't taken notes. He blinked once at you and smiled, waving gingerly. "Hi, I'm Yoosung."

It occurred to you that although this boy had probably sat next to you the whole time you'd been in this class, you had never spoken to him or even really looked at him that closely. You returned his smile. "[y/n]," you introduced yourself. 

"Wow, [y/n]... what a cool name!" He remarked, his eyes wide. He almost looked like an excited puppy. The thought made you laugh inside.

"Thanks," you said shyly. Nobody ever really complimented you, and it wasn't something you were used to. You tore off a corner of your paper and scribbled your number on it, handing it to him. "Let's get in touch soon so we can work on the project," you told him. He took the paper and smiled, nodding enthusiastically.

As you left class, you were glad that you had gotten a partner that seemed promising. He seemed nice enough, and you couldn't wait to get to know him better.

~*~*~*~*~*~

You were making dinner when your phone buzzed in your pocket. You pulled it out and looked at the illuminated screen. On it was a number, meaning the sender wasn't registered in your phone. Your eyes drifted to the message.

_Hiya ^^ It's Yoosung!!_

_Ah_ , you though to yourself. _I totally forgot about that._

You unlocked your phone and quickly added him as a contact, then sent him a quick message back.

_Hey Yoosung (: are you free this weekend? We can meet up and brainstorm ideas for the project._

You turned off your phone and continued making dinner. It wasn't until after you had finished eating and were cleaning your dishes that he responded.

_Oh, yeah, I'm not doing anything. Just name a place and a time and I'll be there!! ^_^_

You texted back the name of a quiet coffee shop and a time that wasn't too early -- 9:30. You were afraid for some reason that he would say no, but he responded with a short "sounds great!" and it was set.

~*~*~*~*~*~

You sat in the coffee shop at a table with two seats, a few pencils and sheets of paper sitting unused on the table in front of you. You turned on your phone to check the time: 9:35. Yoosung hadn't arrived yet and you were already halfway through your scone and cup of coffee. You took your time eating, chewing the scone slowly to let it soften rather than trying to crush it with your teeth. The coffee shop was optimal for working on the project. It was relatively quiet, the only sounds being the soft hum of voices, the occasional grinding of the coffee maker, and the soothing jazz music that floated around the store from the many speakers around the room. You looked down at your empty paper as you thoughtfully chewed another bite. When you had finished your breakfast and half of your coffee, you checked the time again. 9:45. No texts from Yoosung offering any explanation as to where he was. You frowned.

Trying to reason, you told yourself that he might have misread the time for 9:45 or something. Or maybe he woke up late, or got caught in traffic. As time passed, the sleepy shop seemed to wake up around you, more customers coming in. The cafe also offered brunch and lunch options, and around 11 o'clock it became very crowded. You had hoped that you and Yoosung would be finished by that time so leaving wouldn't be a fight through traffic, but if he arrived any later they would have to stay that long. 

Seats around you began to fill up. You felt employees looking at you as if they were wondering whether or not you were going to leave. You picked up your pencil and started scrawling various diseases you knew, trying to look like you had a purpose. You didn't want to start working without Yoosung, but when you saw it was 10:00 you accepted that he probably wasn't coming, for whatever reason.

At 10:10, the door opened loudly and you looked up from your relatively long list of diseases and your phone, which was open to an article going on about some rare bone disease. Standing just inside was Yoosung. He was wearing a blue hoodie and black jeans. His hair was as wild as it had been yesterday, and he looked flustered. He looked frantically around the cafe and his gaze eventually met yours. He walk-jogged across the room to you, dodging customers as he went, and slid quickly into the chair across from you, pulling out his phone and setting it on the table. You couldn't help but notice that he had brought nothing besides his phone and probably his wallet; no pencil, no paper, no laptop, nothing. You were glad you had brought multiple pencils and sheets of paper.

With Yoosung now up close, you got a better view of his face. His eyes were half-lidded and he had dark circle sitting under them as if he hadn't slept at all. He was slouching in his chair and said nothing for a moment, finally straightening and looking you in the eye. He blinked a few times, gathered his thoughts, and then started talking.

"Gosh, [y/n], I'm so so sorry. I woke up this morning at 9:30 and remembered that that was when I was supposed to meet you here. I got here as quickly as I could and ah--" he patted his pockets for emphasis-- "didn't grab anything in my haste."

You smiled, sliding a pencil and extra piece of paper over to him. "That's alright," you told him. "I brought extra materials. I was just writing down diseases that I thought would be good for the project." 

He reached over and grabbed my list, scanning it quickly with glassy eyes. He put it back down so fast that I wasn't sure if he had really even read it. He smiled. "Man, these are really good. We should just pick from these, because I don't think I'd be able to find anything better."

You nodded, incredulous, and circled the bone disease that you had been reading about when he busted in. "Well," I said. "That's really all I had planned. Just looking for a disease to focus on. But since that's already done, I guess you rushed here for nothing," you made it sound like you blamed yourself, but you were still upset at his half-attempt at an excuse. You didn't pry, giving him the benefit of the doubt and reasoning that he might have been doing something important and not gotten any sleep. It wasn't any of your business anyway.

Yoosung deflated. "Aw, man, I'm really sorry," he told you. You nodded in response and gathered your papers and pencils, standing and preparing to leave. Yoosung grabbed your wrist and stood as well. "Wait, um, do you want to come to my place next time? That way I won't keep you waiting for half an hour somewhere," he laughed nervously, still holding onto your wrist.

"Yeah, sounds good. Tomorrow?" you asked.

He nodded, lighting up again. He still had a grip on your wrist, and people were starting to stare. Would they think you two were a couple? The thought made you mildly uncomfortable and you pulled my wrist from his grip. "Oh! Sorry," he said, obviously just realizing he had been holding it the whole time.

You put my hand in your pocket. "So, tomorrow. Text me your address and a time and I'll be there." You gave him a reassuring smile and he nodded again.You turned to leave and he came with you, stepping in front of you and opening the door so you could walk through. How chivalrous. You thanked him and made your way towards your car without another glance back.


	2. Yoosung's House

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You arrive at Yoosung's house with the intent to get more of the project done, but Yoosung has a tendency to get distracted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey anybody who's reading this! I totally left this story in the middle of nowhere and I sincerely apologize. I don't even really have any excuses, and the only reason I'm coming back to finish this is my overwhelming hatred of leaving things unfinished. so, enjoy, if you're still here! :D

You looked the door of the apartment up and down. There was mildew around the edges. It was a rundown place. typical of a college student. You would know, since your own apartment was similar in appearance on the outside and you were, too, a college student. You knocked on the door and waited patiently. A minute passed, then two, and you frowned at the unmoving, mildewed brown door in front of you. You knocked again. No answer. You clicked on your phone, rereading Yoosung's text that had the date and address. You were right on time, maybe even a little late. You clicked your phone back off and rapped on the door again with a huff.

 

There was a shuffling sound inside, followed by a crash, then a bang, then a yell. Your jaw fell open and you were about to yell when the door swung open, revealing Yoosung, his hair disheveled and his eyes bleary with sleep.

 

"Shit," he breathed, quietly, but you heard it all the same. "I'm so so sorry," he continued, stepping to the side and gesturing for you to come in. You stepped over the dirty threshold and into an equally dirty apartment. The kitchen counter was littered with plates, pizza boxes, cups, mugs, you name it. Your eyes drifted to the floor and the shards of what you assumed had been a bowl where scattered about. There was a spoon nearby, and cheerios, confirming that it was indeed a bowl at some point. You figured that was the source of the crashing sound you heard moments earlier. 

 

Yoosung was still speaking as he closed the door, and you weren't sure if he was actually directing his words at you or not. "I can't even wake up on time, how awful am I? Geez I feel awful, I need to get a grip..." he trailed off, his words becoming incoherent mumbles as he walked past you into the kitchen. You stood awkwardly just inside the apartment and watched him tiptoe gingerly around the bowl shards to open the fridge. "Hungry?" he asked, his voice still slurred with sleep. It took you a moment to register he was asking you a question.

 

"Oh, no, thank you though," you responded. Yoosung closed the fridge, a RedBull clutched in his hand. He cracked the can open and raised it to his lips, tipping it bottom up and downing the entire can in less than a minute. He crunched it slightly and threw it in the general direction of the trashcan. You grimaced. "This place is kind of a dump," you said, mostly to yourself, but Yoosung laughed, cheerful and loud despite his sleepy appearance.

 

"It sure is," he agreed, his lazy eyes glossing over the cluttered counter. There was fondness in his gaze despite his words. He turned and walked toward the living room, making a vague motion with his hand that you should follow him. He sat on the couch and you sat as well, space between you. The coffee table was littered with the same kind of junk as the counter, pizza boxes and mugs and chip bags. Yoosung lifted a lazy arm and shoved everything off and onto the carped with a variety of noises clashing as one. He yawned and turned to look at you. "Do you have that list thingy or whatever?" he asked, blinking.

 

It took you a moment to realize he was talking about the project. You slid the small backpack off of your shoulder and set it on the floor between your feet, unzipping it and riffling through the papers. You pulled them out, along with a couple of pencils, and set them on the coffee table. Yoosung scooted closer to you and for a moment you tensed, wondering what he was doing, watching him out of the corner of your eye, and then you saw him pick up one of the pencils. Oh, right. Of course. What else would be possibly be doing. Your gaze traveled past him to a computer setup in the corner. It was a tangled mess of wires and speakers and you saw headphones sitting next to the keyboard.

 

Yoosung looked up at you and turned, following your eyes. "Ah," he said. "My computer? Pretty cool, right? I use it to play LOLOL, this really fun game." He turned back to you, a wide grin on his face. He still had a haze of sleep about him and you realized he was wearing the same clothes that he was at the cafe yesterday. How much sleep did he even get, if any at all?

 

His sleepy grin didn't falter as his gaze fell to the pencil, mindlessly twisting it in his hands. You arched one eyebrow, thinking that maybe you should come back later when Yoosung was a little more responsive. You turned to look at the shattered bowl that he neglected to even attempt to pick up. He obviously wasn't all there, not yet anyway.

 

When you turned back to look at Yoosung again, he was closer to you, leaning in slightly. You jumped a little, barely biting back a yelp. He beamed again, and laughed. "Y'know, you're really cool," he said, blinking slowly at you, a goofy smile still on his lips. "I can't believe you're so patient."

 

You shrugged, avoiding his somehow intense gaze and instead looking at the papers. His close proximity was distracting. "Thanks," you replied quietly, unsure if he heard. He sat back with a sigh, staring at the papers as well. He made a soft laughing sound. You wondered when the RedBull was going to kick in and he would start acting more... not drunk. Wait, he wasn't drunk, or hungover, was he? You looked back up at him. He didn't strike you as the party type, or even someone who drinks in general. He was still fixated on the papers. You decided that no, he didn't seem like he was drunk, just extremely tired. He had dark bags under his purple eyes, which were still clouded over. 

 

Yoosung's purple eyes slid to the side, and then he turned his head to look at you fully, his smile widening. "Why are you staring at me, [y/n?]" he asked slowly.

 

Despite the innocent reason for scrutinizing him, you still felt your cheeks heat up. "I dunno," you replied in almost a mumble. The blonde boy laughed again. 

 

"Hah, you're kinda cute when you're blushing," he said.

 

Yeah, he was definitely tired, and his flirty comment, intentional or not, made your face even hotter. This was going to be a long, painful project.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ahhh, sorry this is so short.. it's almost three in the morning right now and im running on fumes. hopefully i'll have something substantial out soon.


	3. Getting Nowhere

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You bang your hip on the counter, you klutz.

When you came over to Yoosung's house, you expected to get work done on the project, and maybe get a good chunk of it done. The cafe mishap was a minor setback and you figured that this visit would make up for it. You hadn't expected this.

Yoosung sighed as he swept up the final shards of the bowl. You were pushing pieces of trash off of the counter and into an open trash bag in your arms. Luckily, Yoosung seemed to be more awake now, as if the RedBull had finally had its desired effect. "Ah, sorry about the mess," he said, dumping the bowl pieces into the trash can. "You really don't have to help me clean, [y/n]."

"Yeah, well, this place is kind of a mess and I didn't think you'd clean it on your own," you said, scrunching up your nose as you picked the trash off of the carpet that he had swept off the coffee table earlier. The remark had come out a little harsher than you intended it to, but Yoosung just laughed.

"Haha, true, I probably wouldn't have, so thank you."

You both fell silent. You could hear Yoosung humming to himself as he wiped down the stove. You found yourself staring at the back of his head. His blonde hair was sticking out in multiple directions and was messier than usual -- he obviously hadn't bothered fixing his bedhead -- but it looked really soft. For a moment you wondered what it would be like to run your fingers through it. You frowned, shaking your head slightly. Yoosung turned and looked at you. His humming stopped. "Why are you frowning?" he asked.

"Ah," you said stupidly. "Dunno, just thinking."

"About what?" he asked, blinking his huge, bright purple eyes. 

"Nothing," you dismissed, unable to break your gaze away from those eyes. You finally turned away to make sure all of the trash was picked up. You walked over to his computer desk and picked up the remaining chip bags before tying the trash bag and walking back to the kitchen to set it by the garbage can. Yoosung was watching you, leaning against the stove. He still had bags under his eyes, and a small smile on his lips.

"What?" you asked.

His smile widened a little, or did you imagine it? "Nothing," he said, obviously mocking you in an exaggerated tone. You made a face at him and he laughed again. You really liked the sound of his laugh.

"Well um..." you said, cracking your knuckles unconsciously, a bit of a nervous habit. "We should probably... work on our project now."

"Yeah, of course," Yoosung replied. Neither one of you moved. He was still looking at you with that small smile on his face. You swallowed and shifted your weight to the other foot.

"I'd like to uh... try to get as much done as we can today," you said, shifting your eyes to the microwave, suddenly becoming very interested in it.

Yoosung made a small 'mhm' noise but still didn't move. You looked back over to him and he was definitely smiling wider. Unable to handle the weird pressure that was building in your chest, you spun on your heel, a little too fast, and bashed your hip on the corner of the counter. " _SHIT_ ," you cursed involuntarily. Yoosung was beside you almost instantly, lightly touching your arm.

"Oh man, that looked like it hurt really bad, are you alright?" he asked, pulling your arm gently to lead you to the couch. You sucked air through your teeth, which made a hissing noise, but could not answer. You painfully shuffled over to the couch and sighed as Yoosung helped you sit down. You leaned back and looked up at him. He looked concerned, but once he saw that you were fine he burst out in laughter.

He doubled over, holding his stomach, and your face heated up in embarrassment. "That... was... so... funny!" Yoosung said in between laughs. His laugh was really endearing, and there was a warm sensation in your chest that you dutifully ignored. Yoosung wiped a tear away from his eye and looked at you once again. "Seriously though, do you want some ice or something?"

"Yeah, sure, whatever." you mumbled, trying to will your cheeks to stop being red. You weren't sure if your blush was due to embarrassment or hearing his laugh again, but you did know that your hip was starting to throb and probably bruise. Yoosung beamed and nodded, giving you a thumbs up, before walk-jogging over to the pantry. He came out with a plastic bag and started filling it with ice, then wrapped it in a paper towel. Your eyes followed him as he did this and made his way back over to you. You moved your hand away from your aching hip to take the ice. You inhaled sharply when, instead of giving you the ice, Yoosung tenderly held it to your hip, making sure he wasn't hurting you further. His eyes flicked from the ice pack to your eyes. 

"Right here?" he asked, seemingly unaware how close he was to you. You nodded, dumbstruck, and Yoosung smiled widely at you.

After a moment of your heart beating so hard you thought it might burst and your cheeks practically aflame, you moved your hand down to grab the ice, rapidly mumbling "yeah okay, I can hold it, thanks." Your thumb and first finger met the cold ice pack, but your last three fell on Yoosung's hand, which covered most of the pack. The blonde in front of you seemed unfazed by this action. He left his hand under yours for a lingering moment before slipping it out from under your fingers. You looked up at him, and you could have sworn his cheeks were tinted pink, but you weren't certain. He was still looking at you, smiling, and your gaze flicked behind him to the scattered papers on the coffee table. Your eyes were fixed on your project, but your mind was everywhere but.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> apparently i have unable-to-write-longer-chapters-itis  
> maybe if i didnt write things super late at night i would actually get somewhere


	4. Actual Work... Sort of

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You put your foot down and get some work done. The same cannot be said for Yoosung.

"Okay, seriously," you said, shifting your hand on the ice pack on your hip. The ice had done its job and the pain was completely gone, replaced by a wet and cold numbness. The downside was how cold your fingers were getting from holding the ice.

The television was on and Yoosung was absentmindedly flipping through channels. His feet were up on the coffee table, his heel pressed onto one of the papers set out. "Hmmm?" He hummed, obviously only half listening. You grabbed your ice pack and without warning pressed it against his face. He yelped and jumped away from you, shouting 'cold cold cold!'. It was funny, and you couldn't help but laugh as you put the ice back in its proper place on your hip.

Yoosung gasped. "I've never heard you laugh before!" He exclaimed, smiling at you. You rolled your eyes and he just chuckled. "Anyway, that was totally mean of you. I don't think you deserve that ice pack anymore." You shot him a look as if to say _just try and take this ice away from me._

Well, try he did. He lunged for you and tried to grab the ice pack, but you yanked it away. He jerked his hand to the side in order to avoid hitting your bruised hip and as a result he slammed into you, pushing you onto the couch. The ice pack fell to the floor and your hip started hurting again regardless of him trying to avoid that. "Get off of me," you muffled, shoving Yoosung away. He was laughing again, propping himself up on one arm and looking down at you. Shit, was he not aware of personal space? He was so close and you weren't sure if you wanted to hit him or not. You didn't have time to decide because he sat up with another laugh and a quiet apology, shutting off the TV and reaching forward to pull the coffee table closer.

"Okay so uh, how do you wanna split this up?" he asked as you sat up. "Like, do you want each of us to do a bit of the paper and the PowerPoint or do you want me to completely take over one and you do the other and then we can look over each other's stuff or what?"

His sudden shift to seriousness gave you whiplash. Just a minute ago he was playing around and bumping into you and sitting so close you could feel his breath on your face and now he was completely focused on the project. What a weird partner you chose for this. Well, whatever, he would help in getting the project done.

"Hm, well..." you mused. "I like to consider myself pretty wordy, so if you want to split it up you can do the PowerPoint. If that's okay."

Yoosung smiled. "Yeah of course that's okay! You get to call the shots, after all," he replied.

"I do?" you asked, confused.

The blonde nodded in response, his bangs bobbing. "I'm the dead weight, so that leaves you as the project leader," he said with a thumbs up and another grin. His response was lighthearted but it made you feel bad either way. You didn't know what to say so a small silence fell. It was slightly awkward, but Yoosung seemed unfazed, turning back to the notes you had made on the bone disease you had taken an interest in. He scanned quickly and nodded. "Alright. I'll just take pictures of this and then go take it to my computer. I have PowerPoint on it," he added, and it seemed to you he was just trying to fill the silence. 

You sat still watching Yoosung as he took out his phone and snapped pictures of the papers. He quickly stood and walked over to his computer setup, flopping in the chair and spinning to face the monitors. You smiled slightly at the action. Yoosung didn't notice. 

Turning your attention back to your task, you pulled your laptop out of your backpack and opening it, booting it up. You created a new word document and started the essay part of the project straight away.

\----------

Your tired eyes slid to the clock in the lower right corner of your laptop. Several hours had passed. You looked up at a window on the wall and saw the sun starting to set. Geez, had you really been here that long? You looked back to your computer and at the long essay you had almost finished. You hit save and stretched, closing it and letting out a huge yawn. "Yoosung, how's the PowerPoint going?" you asked. There was no response and you turned around on the couch to look at him. He was hunched over the computer, his headphones on. Strange. Why did he need headphones for a PowerPoint.

Slowly, you stood and walked over to him. The closer you got, the closer his screen became. He wasn't working on a PowerPoint at all -- in fact it looked like he was playing some form of game. "Yoosung?" you called. He didn't seem to hear you. You laid a hand on his shoulder and he jumped, immediately sliding the headphones back off his head to sit on his neck and looking up at you.

"Oh, oh [y/n], I'm sorry. Honestly I totally forgot you were here. Oh gosh, oh man, uh..." he trailed off, frantically closing the game he was playing. On the screen in its place was now the PowePoint application, open to a PowerPoint presentation that was absolutely blank, untitled and everything. For a moment you barely registered that fact, and when you did you simply reached your hand up to pinch the bridge of your nose. 

"Oh my god..." you mumbled to yourself. You felt a headache coming on. "You've been playing games this whole time?"

Yoosung laughed nervously, wringing his hands. "I'm so sorry, I just thought I would check it real quick before I started but then I started a raid and... wow I can't believe how much time has passed I... I really am the dead weight huh?" he laughed again, avoiding your gaze. He was still trying to make light of the situation but it wasn't doing much to qualm the anger bubbling up to the surface. 

"I can't fail this class, Yoosung," you said simply, your voice steely calm. Half of you was wondering what would happen if you just pushed the computer off the table so he couldn't play that silly game anymore, but the logical part of your brain prevented you from doing so.

"I know, I'm seriously so sorry! I'll finish the PowerPoint, I promise. Are you hungry? I don't have much food here other than instant noodles but we can go down the street or something? I'm not too far from town and there are a ton of places to eat there..."

"No, that's fine. I think I'll just go home," you replied, too tired to even be angry with him.

Yoosung deflated. Literally deflated. You swear the lighting in the room got dimmer when his smile fell. "I want to make it up to you somehow. I'll buy you dinner!"

"Make it up to me by finishing the PowerPoint," you replied quietly, but you knew he heard it. You zipped up your backpack and slung it onto your back. Yoosung didn't say anything as you opened the door and let yourself out of his apartment.


End file.
